You Were
by Silvan Arrow
Summary: Yuan thinks back on his enduring friendship with Kratos before making the decision to save his best friend or allow him eternal rest. Friendship fluff during the Torent Forest. NOT YAOI!


Silvan Arrow: Hello, out there! This one-shot has been in my head for a while, so I just had to write it. And now…I need a muse.

Kratos: -walks in- Huh? What am I doing here?

Silvan Arrow: What great timing! YOU can be my muse!

Kratos: …Absurd.

Silvan Arrow: Oh come on. It's just a one-shot. PLEEEAASE? -gives puppy dog look-

Kratos: -sigh- Fine.

Silvan Arrow: Yay! Now you can do the disclaimer!

Kratos: Whatever.

Silvan Arrow: Wow, do you specialize in one-liners…er…one-worders…or something?

Kratos: -rolls eyes- Silvan Arrow does not own Tales of Symphonia or any of its characters. They belong to Namco.

Silvan Arrow: Wow…that was a mouthful coming from you. By the way, a lot of this one-shot is a series of flashbacks, so I hope it's not too confusing to follow. Okay, while I try to give him an attitude adjustment so he'll look on life with a more positive outlook, here's the story!

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You Were… 

Yuan walked briskly through the green, leafy labyrinth that constituted the Torent Forest. He still wasn't exactly sure how he had managed to slip past the elven guards undetected, but that didn't matter right now. His feet knew the way, which left his mind free to wander back in time…4000 years ago.

Four thousand years is a long time to have known someone.

Perhaps…too long?

_You were my acquaintance… _

That day had started like any other in Heimdall, before the days of discrimination against half-elves, before men and elves hated each other, before the bitter days that marked the Great Kharlan War. A strange swordsman with auburn hair wandered into the village on some unknown business. Yuan met him on the path to the elder's house, exchanged a few cordial words and introductions, and learned his name: Kratos Aurion. After that, Kratos continued down the road, and Yuan went his own way. He figured he would never see Kratos again.

But he was wrong.

_You were my companion… _

Yuan had never felt so helpless before. He had been banished from Heimdall. Today, he had lost everything: his family, his friends, even his home. His only solace was the knowledge that he wasn't completely alone. Two younger half-elves, both in their teenage years, had been banished along with him. One was a boy named Mithos, and the other was his younger sister Martel. As the oldest of the three, though only by a few years, Yuan felt responsible to look after them. But where would they go? No town or city would accept half-elves. If anything, the humans would enslave them and force them to work in underground laboratories, doomed to never see the light of day again.

Yuan struggled to lead Mithos and Martel through the Ymir Forest, but he had rarely left the safety of Heimdall before and thus didn't know the way. Martel screamed as a Giant Boar rushed out of a stand of trees and charged toward the small group. She clung to Mithos for dear life as Yuan stood protectively in front of them and drew his double-bladed weapon. A spell circle appeared beneath him, and a Lightning Spell struck the monster. However, the attack merely stunned the creature and only bought them a few precious seconds. Yuan could only cast some basic magic spells, and his weaponry skills were mediocre at best. He didn't have any hope of defeating the Boar, but maybe he could buy enough time for Mithos and Martel to escape.

"Mithos! Martel! Run for it!" Yuan cried, holding his weapon defensively in front of him. "I'll hold it off as long as I can!"

"But Yuan! What about you?" Martel exclaimed. "We can't just leave you!"

"Just go!" Yuan called desperately, meeting her eyes for a brief moment. But before the Giant Boar could reach him, Yuan heard something metallic whiz through the air and embed itself in the monster's side. It roared loudly in agony and collapsed dead in its tracks. Another figure walked out of the shadows and stood before the three. Yuan couldn't believe who it was.

"…Kratos?"

"What are you doing here?" Kratos asked.

"…We were banished for being half-elves," Mithos replied sorrowfully, glancing away for a brief moment. A defiant expression leapt to his face, and he added, "But it's not like you care! You're a human, after all. Neither humans nor elves will accept us, so just leave us alone!"

"…Are you finished ranting?" Kratos asked after a moment of silence. He took Mithos' shocked silence as a yes. "Now if you'll follow me, I'll lead you out of the forest." He turned and began walking away. He stopped and glanced back at them. "If you want to protect your sister, I suggest you learn how to fight." When he resumed walking, Yuan, Mithos, and Martel followed.

That was the beginning of their friendship.

From that day forward, Kratos, Yuan, Mithos, and Martel were inseparable. Mithos looked up to Kratos like a father, and he learned quickly under his tutelage. At the same time, Yuan and Martel grew closer until neither one could deny their feelings of love for each other. For a time, Yuan was happy. Nothing could dampen his spirits.

Then the war began.

While the Great Kharlan War ravaged the countryside and brought death and destruction in its wake, the four companions searched desperately for a way to save the world. The battles consumed vast amounts of mana, and the Great Kharlan Tree had begun to wither. People all over the world were suffering from droughts and food shortages. Eventually Mithos began making pacts with all the Summon Spirits in hopes of gaining their assistance in ending the war. The days passed slowly, and Yuan felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into depression. But no matter what, Kratos always stayed by his side as a silent supporter. They would often sit up all night together and keep watch while Mithos and Martel slept. Yuan felt comfort knowing that he at least had his three best friends. And then…the unthinkable happened.

Martel was killed.

_You were my lifeline… _

Yuan lay on his bed in his small room in Derris-Kharlan, looking up at the ceiling with a forlorn look on his face. He hadn't left his room in five days. Now that Martel was gone, he had no reason to keep living. He glanced down at the Cruxis Crystal embedded in his hand. Now that he was an angel, he couldn't even try to postpone his sorrow with sleep. Even though his heart was shattered, he couldn't cry to let out all his pent-up emotions. But maybe…his lack of feeling would still prove useful in the end. Yuan sat up and looked over at his desk, where a lone dagger lay. His body no longer felt pain. He could slip from life so easily…and he wouldn't even feel it. In the next few minutes, he could be with Martel again. 'No…I could never be good enough to go where she is now,' Yuan thought miserably. But even the worst afterlife had to be better than the nightmare he was living in now, right?

His mind was made up. Yuan slowly crossed the room, picked up the dagger, and regarded it carefully. He lifted the dagger and prepared to send its cold steel through his heart.

BANG!

Yuan's door flung open and slammed against the wall, revealing Kratos. "Yuan, just what do you think you're doing?" he asked in disbelief. Did he really mean to end his life here and now?

"Don't get in my way, Kratos," Yuan commanded sternly, glaring at the human. "This is my choice." He returned his attention to the dagger in his hand. Before he could blink, a flame-shaped sword knocked the dagger out of Yuan's hand, and it embedded itself in the wall.

"And I made the choice to stop you," Kratos replied calmly before sheathing his sword Flamberge. "Is this about Martel?"

"Why would you care?" Yuan shot back defensively. "I wasn't strong enough to protect her, and for that I deserve death!"

"And do you really think Martel would want you to continue grieving over her in this way, even going so far as to try and commit suicide?" Kratos asked sternly. "She loved you more than anyone. Is this how you would honor her memory?" Kratos had also grieved over Martel's death, for she was one of his closest friends. After all the time the foursome had spent together, life simply felt hollow and empty without her cheery spirit. "I can understand how you feel,"  
Kratos added gently. "I cared about her too."

"You have no idea how I feel!" Yuan exclaimed indignantly. "She was just a friend to you, but to me she was my entire life! Now that she's gone, I feel like I've lost half of my soul! I just stood by and did nothing while she was murdered, so what even makes you think you know how I feel?" He looked away and added in a softer tone, "…I can't even cry to properly mourn her passing."

Kratos' expression softened even more upon seeing his friend pouring his heart out in front of him. He took a couple of steps forward and placed a comforting hand on Yuan's shoulder. "You're right, Yuan. I don't know exactly what you're feeling, but I can still understand and share in your grief. Do you know why?" Yuan lifted his head and looked at Kratos expectantly. "It's because I'm your friend."

At that moment, the walls around Yuan's heart came crashing down, and a choked sob wrenched its way out of his throat. He dropped his head and gripped Kratos' shoulders with both hands, not trusting in his legs alone to keep him upright, as all his trapped emotions burst out at once. Tears flooded from his eyes as miserable sobs wracked the half-elf's slender frame. Kratos slowly coaxed Yuan to sit on the edge of the bed, for fear he would collapse standing up, and sat with him while he cried his heart out on his shoulder. Eventually Kratos felt Yuan's tears soak through his shirt and onto his skin, but he made no move to escape them. Instead, he draped one arm across his friend's shoulders, closed his eyes, and leaned his head against Yuan's, silently sharing in his pain.

After nearly fifteen minutes, Yuan's gut-wrenching sobs quieted to soft whimpers, and he found his voice again. "Kratos…thank you. I nearly made the worst mistake of my life," he whispered.

"No thanks are necessary, my friend," Kratos replied.

But life would eventually get even more complicated for the two Seraphim.

_You were my enemy… _

Four millennia passed since the Great Kharlan War, and soon Yuan and Kratos began to see the madness of Mithos' ways. Driven by his grief over Martel's death, he sought to create an Age of Lifeless Beings in order to end the discrimination that his beloved sister had wanted to eliminate. However, this was nothing more than a twisted, inhumane way of fulfilling Martel's last wish. While Yuan secretly formed the Renegades to oppose the Desians, Kratos met and fell in love with Anna. However, once she met her end, along with the young couple's three-year-old son and Noishe, Kratos returned to Cruxis in a state of depression. Overshadowed by his grief, he once again followed Mithos blindly for fifteen years. This made matters difficult for Yuan. In order to obtain the Eternal Sword, the source of Mithos' power, he needed to form a pact with Origin. However, the seal was none other than his closest friend. In order to break the seal, Kratos had to release all his mana, thereby sacrificing his life. Still…it was either that or allow the two worlds to die, especially since the Great Seed was dying as well. Once Kratos joined the seventh Chosen's group, Yuan knew what he had to do.

He had to kill Kratos.

Throughout Kratos' journey with the Chosen, a girl named Colette Brunel, in Sylvarant, Yuan did everything in his power to make the journey of world regeneration fail. He sent Botta and his soldiers out numerous times to try and kill the Chosen, but his old friend was always too much for the Renegades to handle. Only Yuan could stand up to Kratos' strength, but it would mean the downfall of the Renegades if Yuan revealed himself. He almost succeeded in destroying him in Hima, but Kratos' son Lloyd just had to shout a warning in time. At times Yuan aided Lloyd and his comrades, and at other times he sought to capture him to use as leverage against Kratos. During that time, he also served as a double-agent between Cruxis and the Renegades. Once again, he nearly succeeded in forcing Kratos to release Origin's seal. He captured Lloyd while his party rested at the house of a dwarf in Tethe'alla and finally revealed to the boy that Kratos was his father. Yuan's terms were simple: Kratos had to release the seal, or Lloyd died. However, his plan was thwarted when Mithos interfered.

Now Yuan was in a difficult spot. Mithos knew that he led the Renegades, and Kratos knew that he was the one who had tried to assassinate him in Hima. Furthermore, his right-hand man from the Renegades, Botta, was dead. He had alienated his comrades from 4000 years ago and lost a vital member of his organization. No one trusted him,

Yuan was alone in the world.

_You were my friend… _

Back in the Torent Forest, Yuan watched from behind some bushes as Kratos approached the seal of Origin with what little strength his body still possessed after his one-on-one duel with Lloyd. White mana laced with feathers floated up around him, and his crystal blue wings materialized on his back. The blue-haired Seraph could clearly see Lloyd's pained expression at watching his own father sacrificing himself just so he could wield the Eternal Sword. The giving of his mana—his very lifeblood—to release Origin's seal was Kratos' ultimate example of paternal love for his son. Yuan thought to himself, Could he really just sit here and do nothing? Could he simply watch from the sidelines as his oldest friend gave up his life when he could do something about it?

As Kratos' mana was exhausted and he staggered back, about to fall, Yuan made his decision. Before anyone could blink, he rushed out of hiding and caught Kratos' body before he hit the ground. A gentle blue glow surrounded the two Seraphim for a few brief moments as Yuan allowed some of his own mana to flow into Kratos' body, bringing him back from death's door.

"Is he…?" Lloyd asked hesitantly, fearing the worst had come to pass.

"He's alive. I gave him some of my mana," Yuan replied curtly, meeting Lloyd's eyes briefly before returning his attention to the auburn-haired swordsman in his arms.

Slowly, Kratos' eyes fluttered open and locked with those of his fellow Seraph. In that brief instant, something unspoken passed between the two: an understanding. None of their past transgressions against each other mattered now. Yuan could see a flood of colliding emotions in Kratos' normally expressionless orbs: disappointment for missing another chance to end this wearying existence, gratitude for saving his life, confusion as to why Yuan would save him after trying to kill him before, sorrow for all the sins he had committed in Cruxis, and…forgiveness? All this happened in half a second, and then Lloyd launched into a speech about how nothing good would come of Kratos dying.

As Yuan's mana coursed through his body, Kratos felt his strength return. He met the half-elf's gaze and saw a small smile tug at the corner of his mouth, a smile only he could see. He could almost hear his friend's voice in his mind: 'You need to keep living, Kratos, if not for your sake then Lloyd's…and mine. It's not your time to go yet.' Kratos spared a tiny smile for his friend.

'…Fine. You win.'

_You are my brother. _

End

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Silvan Arrow: -sniffles- Awwww…that was so sweet! I think I'm gonna cry!

Kratos: Whatever.

Silvan Arrow: So…you still have an attitude, huh? Well, then you can conclude this little authoress rant and ask the nice readers to review.

Kratos: Why don't you do it?

Silvan Arrow: I have tomatoes! -waves tomato threateningly in the air-

Kratos: O.O -gulp- Okay! Okay! You win! Silvan Arrow would like for you to review this story and give your opinions. Please…before she sics those evil tomatoes on me!

Silvan Arrow: -pats him on the head- There, there…now that wasn't so hard, was it? Please review!

Kratos: …


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